Petraeus: I will 'never' run for office

From NBC's Domenico MontanaroIn an interview with NBC's Brian Williams to air tonight on NBC Nightly News, Gen. David Petraeus says he will "never" run for or hold public office.

"And I've tried to say that on a number of occasions," Petraeus said. "Some folks have reminded me of a country western song that says, 'What part of no, don't you understand?'"

Williams also asked, "In your job, you give orders, you also take them from your Commander in Chief. And if your commander in chief said 'get out,' could you carry that out?

Petraeus: "Absolutely. Again, we raise our right hand; we swear to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. One of the principles enshrined in the way we do business in the United States is civilian control of the military. There is also responsibility on the part of a commander, of course, to discuss what risks are associated with various courses of action. And I firmly believe whoever it is that is elected in the fall, will sit down and look at the various interests, try to figure out the competing risks, because there are risks beyond Iraq."